Effect of the Length of Tethered Chains and the Interphase Structure on Adhesion between Glass and Polyethylene

Abstract

The adhesion between glass and polyethylene (high-density polyethylene (HDPE) or low-density polyethylene (LDPE)) was improved by means of polyethylene chains grafted on the glass surface. Chlorosilane-terminated polyethylene (PE) with different molar masses were synthesized in order to obtain (i) semicrystalline polymers able or not to crystallize with the free chains of the polyethylenes matrices and ( ii) polymer chains which could react with the silanol groups from the glass surface. The grafting of alkylchlorosilanes (alkyl chain length varying from C4H9 to C30H61) was considered in comparison to the polymer chains. The adhesion developed at the polyethylene/glass interface was studied as a function of the molar mass of functionalized-polyethylene grafted on the glass surface. For that purpose, the asymmetric double cantilever beam test was used to determine the fracture energy, Gi, of the interface. On both high-density and low-density polyethylene/glass joints, the fracture energy of the interface,...